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For several decades, the federal government has supported programs that encourage adolescents to wait to have sex. This support stems in part from the evidence and expectations that delaying sexual activity can have important benefits for adolescents and society as a whole. The most direct of these benefits are reductions in teen pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections (STIs). However, research has also found benefits of delayed sexual activity extending beyond these physical outcomes...
This brief summarizes findings from a random assignment impact study of Wise Guys, a long-standing, widely implemented curriculum designed to help adolescent males make responsible decisions about their sexual behavior. Nationwide, boys report higher rates of sexual risk behaviors than girls do. In addition, becoming a father as a teenager is associated with completing fewer years of schooling and being less likely to graduate from high school...
Policymakers and practitioners are interested in identifying strategies and approaches to empower youth to make informed decisions that promote optimal health. Such decisions include the avoidance and cessation of sexual risk. Identifying the factors that influence youth’s decisions to avoid or cease sexual activity can support policymakers, practitioners, and public health officials as they develop programming and policy to improve risk-related outcomes...
What are the patterns of benefit receipt among families who experience homelessness? This brief uses data collected for the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s Family Options Study to analyze patterns of receipt of TANF cash assistance, SNAP food assistance, and publicly funded health insurance benefits among these families, with a focus on the characteristics of those receiving and not receiving benefits...
This report summarizes key findings from the implementation of Teen Choice in New York. Teen Choice is a comprehensive sex education program, covering both abstinence and contraception. Teen Choice was adapted to allow for implementation with youth with severe emotional and behavioral issues...
This report summarizes short-term impact findings from rural high schools in Kentucky implementing an adapted version of Reducing the Risk, a comprehensive sex education program. The study findings indicate that the adapted version of Reducing the Risk had short-term impacts on some but not all of the program’s targeted outcomes.
This brief highlights the implementation infrastructure of Personal Responsibility Education Program evidence-based teen pregnancy prevention programs in...
This brief highlights key findings from the implementation of Wise Guys — a comprehensive sex education program designed specifically for males — in seven Davenport, IA area middle schools during the 2013-2014 and 2014-2015 school years...